


Creations of the Imagination

by bearinapotatosack



Series: NATM Drabbles [4]
Category: Night at the Museum (Movies)
Genre: Ahkmenrah’s Past, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mentions of Capital Punishment, Mentions of Murder, Minor Character Death, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-06
Updated: 2019-03-06
Packaged: 2019-11-13 01:47:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18022496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bearinapotatosack/pseuds/bearinapotatosack
Summary: Every week Ahkmenrah has to catch up on his rest, but after the events at the Smithsonian, things are different in Aaru- the Egyptian Land of the Dead that the pharaoh travels to every time he sleeps. Kahmunrah has been put to rest but he hasn’t finished meddling with his brother’s life yet.





	Creations of the Imagination

Ahkmenrah’s eyes shot open come the break of dusk. The dull gleam of shadowed gold hung above him as he carefully uncrossed his arms and pushed open the unlocked sarcophagus. As he gently climbed out of the golden coffins, the Jackals immediately stood upwards to protect the king.

  
He shouted to them to stand down in Egyptian as he briskly unwrapped himself from his bandages. Ahkmenrah found himself rubbing his eyes as he exited the glamorous exhibition, ‘ _I guess today’s the day that I need to sleep,_ ’ he thought to himself as he walked down the stairs to where the others were congregated. They shot him a brief smile as he joined them around the computer which Jed and Octavius were watching cat videos once more.

As the cats chased various objects on the screen, Ahkmenrah’s eyes flicked around the small clump he was a part of. Teddy was chuckling his signature laugh, low and jolly, almost like the Saint Nicholas he’d heard so much about over the past few years. Sacajawea was perched on the desk and was effortlessly mending a rip in one of Larry’s shirts- that woman seemed to be amazing at everything. Attila just so happened to be the only one who was fully immersed in the video, mumbling odd words in Hun- mainly “Sorcery,” as his eyes they laughed loudly at every video that showed up on the screen. Christina was hunched over a laptop, lost in her own world and humming a song that none of them had ever heard; Larry had been swivelling around on the wheelie chair whilst tapping a meaningless tune on the arms.

Gradually his concentration lowered and eyelids felt heavy, until he eventually cried out, “Tonight is the night that I will be catching up on my sleep, Larry where are my sleeping clothes?” The group turned towards his dramatic outburst and turned towards the night guard who had rose from his seat.

As they reached the worn-down door of the break room, their hands scuffled and touched. Eyes met as they made no attempt to hide their obvious attraction to each other. A flush erupted onto both of their faces as they struggled to pull away from each other. Larry’s breath became shorter forcing them to end the moment leaving them to anxiously unlock the door and enter.

Ahkmenrah stood in the vacant room, the furniture was torn with age and the parchment coloured stuffing spilled out from the sagging material. A few scratched, metal fold-up chairs stood askew around the room; a small kitchenette lined the walls, it’s only ornaments being a dirty microwave and a chipped kettle. In the corner, a collection of selves and filing cabinets stood holding a multitude of nick nacks- and Ahkmenrah’s sleeping clothes.

“Thank you for escorting me, Larry, if you could just get me my clothes and a blanket then I will remove my crown and cloak,” He turned while Larry busily grabbed the required items and lay them on the antique brown desk that looked like it had been poorly cared for. Larry coughed and briefly waved before wishing him a good rest and leading himself to the door. Ahkmenrah sighed, he’d seen Larry’s brave side and new that it existed yet he insisted on pathetically hiding his clear feelings for Ahk.

But as fatigue began to fill his bloodstream, he pulled his mind from childish pining and briskly changed into his comfortable, modern clothes. Even before Larry had left, Ahkmenrah had gone through the routine of sleeping off the fatigue that he gathered over the week. It was all because he was a genuine human, a curse at the best of times. His memories seemed more real instead of stories and his death still haunted him after thousands of years.

He collapsed onto the brown fabric sofa and exerted a deep breath, closing his eyes and attempting sleep- a task that came easily to him. Sleeping hadn’t always come easy to Ahk, the stress of being a young Pharaoh placed a wall between him and relaxation. But now, the act was simple: close his eyes, breathe deep breaths and feel himself float gently into sleep as if he were calmly bobbing down a river.

* * *

 

_Ahkmenrah’s eyes shot open. He was here. Like always. The Land of the Dead._

_Aaru._

_He always found himself here, whenever he fell into a slumber his soul would travel to Aaru and bask in the glory of it all. It’s colours shone on his skin as he propped himself up from lying down on his old bed- his bed from Egypt. Looking at his skin, it’s usual bronze tone was layered with translucent amethyst, emerald, jasper, turquoise, lazuli and the continuous gold that shone throughout his memories._

_To his right, sheer linen curtains billowed in a soft desert breeze and gave a glimpse of the grey sky holding an array of calm beams of light. To his left, a glorious mural both standing out from the sheer amount of gold in the room and blending in with the assorted jewels that were incrusted in various items of furniture surrounding him._

_He rose up and saw that he was adorned in his smooth everyday pharaoh clothes, a nice change from his bejewelled robes that he wore permanently. The cool floor felt smooth under his feet, not a single grain of sand just like it used to be before he died. Ahkmenrah toured the room that he once thrived in, the tables the same, the chairs not moved and all the ornaments immaculate. Everything seemed set in time- too still to be real._

_He headed back towards the balcony, the curtains catching against his rolling skin as he interrupted their flight. The balcony was encased with the same stone as the rest of the room, Ahkmenrah leant his hands on the wall and overlooked the peaceful land that had once been his kingdom. Many other spirits congregated in small groups, most likely conversing over their lives back in the glory days of Ancient Egypt._

_As he began to let the comforting desert air whip up his cloak in the same manner as the curtains, an echoing voice came from behind him, “Enjoying the memories, little brother?”_

_It was Kahmunrah, he appeared just the same as he last saw him, constantly dressed in the finest of Egypt’s materials and patronising his own flesh and blood yet again. From the descriptions he’d received from the others, the model they saw was completely different from his real brother. Kahmunrah would not have been pleased, the tone of his skin miscalculated; the thick black hair he took pride in had been lost to grey hair. Although he hadn’t been at the Smithsonian, Ahkmenrah knew he wouldn’t have recognised his brother._

_“As always, Kahmunrah, as always,” This had been the first time he’d slept since his brother’s spirit had finally been set to rest, Ahkmenrah’s best guess was that once the mannequin had been made, it became a vessel for his brother to wreak havoc. “Tell me, are you enjoying your time in Aaru, the Land of the Eternal Paradise?”_

_He chuckled, it was short and condescending, “It may be somewhat enjoyable, but I think you share my discontent with our surroundings, don’t you brother?” He stepped forwards and joined his brother at the wall, for a few moments they peacefully overlooked the kingdom they had both ruled._

_In the silence, Ahkmenrah remembered the times when the brothers were inseparable. Before Kahmunrah found out he was last in line to the throne. Before he murdered their sister Henite out of a deluded hope that he’d be next in line. Before he found out that he wasn’t born fully of royal blood._

_But the moment ended with Kahmunrah continuing with his speech, “But I have found comfort in the short time I have spent here,” They faced each other, their comforts had always differed, with Ahkmenrah enjoying long baths and Kahmunrah revelling in the torment of others._

_“Is that so,” Ahkmenrah mumbled with a slight eye roll, he could only imagine what he could find comforting in Aaru, the place was teeming with gory stories Kahmunrah could take comfort in. He turned and slowly fled to his room, purely to escape whatever ludicrous story his brother had yet to tell him. “And what is it exactly that you have found comfort in?”_

_“Turn around and I’ll show you,”_

_Ahkmenrah craned his neck around to see the translucent figure of a prisoner standing, or rather hovering, next to his brother. From what he could make out, the figure was charred, their hair lost and body slim down to their bones. ‘_ How could this be _?’ He pondered before managing to squeak out, “What form of sorcery do you so proudly parade in front of me, brother?”_

_His brother laughed his signature laugh once more, he too had turned around to face Ahkmenrah directly in the eye, “This is no sorcery, Ahkmenrah, oh no, this is just one of your many victims that I have been getting acquainted with,”_

_“No, I didn’t have any victims,” He turned to face his bed and collapsed in shock and fear, this couldn’t be happening. After thousands of years of reliving his mistakes, finally he was face to face with the one thing he feared most. “I just had prisoners,”_

_“Oh yes, you were just doing what you had to, you were just protecting your people, weren’t you Ahkmenrah?” Kahmunrah had stepped away from the hovering figure and circled his brother condescendingly. A light stroke traced the open skin of the back of his neck, causing the delicate hairs to arm themselves in the air. “You were so devoted to your cause, weren’t you,”_

_Ahkmenrah couldn’t look up, could only glare at his hands, they shook as if there was an earthquake beneath them. His breath hitched while he listened to his brother’s voice- which was barely a whisper now._

_‘_ Why now? He traveled to Aaru every time he slept but only now he was witnessing the aftermath of his reign _?’ He pondered, attempting to tune out Kahmunrah_ . ‘Of course only Kahmunrah could possibly be responsible for creating such well-deserved turmoil inside him _,’_

_Kahmunrah finished circling his brother and returned to the side of the spirit, which was fading in and out of view every now and then. Gradually, Ahkmenrah shuffled around, still on his knees, to finally glare at the floor below the spirit. He heaved for a few more minutes as he unscrambled his words in his head._

_“How many are here?” Ahkmenrah’s voice sounded as though he was being choked- scratchy, raw and filled with shock. “How many have you discovered?”_

_Kahmunrah chuckled once more, it was empty and entirely emotionless, he waved his hand once more. As if on queue, more prisoners floated through the walls and congregated on the balcony, around the bed, all ending up swirling around the young king._

_Their charred rags of prison uniforms attempted to scrape along the floor but ended up disappearing into the stone like how they entered Ahkmenrah’s chambers. As the circling sped up, Ahkmenrah’s hands shook more, tears of guilt and pain seared the smooth skin of his cheeks and his eyes just managed to glimpse at the endless rows of prisoners surrounding him._

_“You can’t escape your actions, little brother!” Kahmunrah bellowed over the wind that seemed to be blowing gales from the archway he was facing. “You are not as innocent as you make yourself out to be!”_

_The words filled his head, forcing more burning tears onto his face: “_ Murderer. Murderer. Murderer _.” The thoughts circled, mimicking the chains of dead prisoners encompassing him._

_“Murderer.”_

 

_“Murderer.”_

_The sharp thoughts in his head spilled out onto the tongues of everyone surrounding him- Kahmunrah, the prisoners, even the whipping wind boomed the words that couldn’t be so true._

_“Murderer.”_

 

_“Murderer.”_

 

_“Murderer!”_

* * *

 

His sweat-shut eyes exploded open as he muttered the words that were still bouncing around his head. His body unconsciously sat up only for him to realise that he was surrounded by his friends.

“Murderer, murderer, I’m a murderer,” The words kept on slipping out of his mouth like a leaking tap that was ever dripping water. “I shouldn’t be here, I should’ve payed for my wrongs, I should’ve-“ Sacajawea raised her hand and calmly stroked the thin layer of sweat that was shining on his forehead away. Her arms slowly surrounded him until they were swaying slightly in a comforting hug.

No one spoke for a while, just watching the moment happen while they awkwardly stood on the sidelines. They gradually moved away from each other as Ahkmenrah wiped the silent tears he had absent mindedly shed. The group waited for someone to speak, all tiptoeing around the elephant in the room.

After calming his breathing, Ahkmenrah swung his legs off the aged, brown sofa and dramatically discarded the yellow tartan blanket at his feet. ‘ _How could that have happened? Was it even real?_ ’ Ran continuously around his head like a merry-go-round, ‘ _How had he got away with this for over four-thousand years?_ _Why hadn’t anyone, or moreso anything, made him pay for his actions?’_

The whys and whats drew his attention while he paced to and fro the room, only being grounded by the soothing coolness of the concrete floor. Ahkmenrah sighed and began to aggressively rub his temples to make sense of it all; he could feel the harsh yet concerned stares on his body as he slowed down his pacing. With a groan, he turned around and solemnly moved towards the group- their faces were obviously laced with worry.

“Ahk, what was that all about?” Larry met the young pharaoh halfway and placed a somewhat comforting hand on his exposed arm. “You wanna talk about it?”

Ahkmenrah couldn’t bring himself to open his mouth, all he could do was glare at the security guard’s torso as harsh thoughts, that could only make him feel guiltier, ran about his mind. He was certain that if he told them about his past self, then he would be shoved back into his sarcophagus immediately. “No, it was merely a nightmare, no factual basis at all,” His voice shook as he bee-lined towards the desk to distract himself from whatever questions lay ahead.

Teddy stepped in time with the pharaoh as Ahkmenrah briskly stormed and grabbed his traditional clothes with an air of annoyance, “Come on Lad, this behaviour isn’t normal for you, we're not going to judge you, whatever it is,” All Ahkmenrah did was give him a look he hadn't shot at anyone in almost four-thousand years.

“Nothing. Is. Wrong.” He challenged the president with a rebellious defiance that didn't come naturally to the once complacent young ruler. “Now if you don't mind, I am going to get changed into my normal clothes,”

He scanned the room, watching the reactions of his friends with a sick gratification, “Without watching eye

The loyal people turned around walked out anyway- covering any shock incredibly well as Ahkmenrah watched them leave. His friends all had an immense amount of patience, they'd stuck around Attila when he was a loose canon. But Ahkmenrah was different, if they knew of the past him, he’d only be confirming their fears and doubts.

As he got changed, his impatient mindset was only heightened with every inch that his Egyptian clothing climbed up and onto his body. He’d experienced the pain, the terror, the last thing he wanted to do was relieve everything just so his friends could give him some generic advice. A low growl left his throat as he rose to his full height and regally entered the room next door- pulling the attention of his friends.

“How are y’all doing now, Ahky?” Jedidiah bellowed from his position in the dip of Attila’s hat. “Ya had a bit of an outburst back there!”

The others all shared their concerns with nods or small mumbles amongst each other, but as Ahkmenrah approached, he merely shoved his way through the miniature clump they’d formed to reach his exhibit- or wherever his destination was. From behind him came a shout in a foreign language that took a concerning amount of time to decipher.

“ _Foda-se você!”_

Christina had appeared behind him when Ahkmenrah had turned around in shock, she’d never used that kind of language with him- even at her most angry moments. All he managed was a confused look that still maintained a deep-set amount of annoyance in return. But before he could spit out a response to accompany his glare, Christina spoke once more.

“I thought we had an agreement, if I told you what was going wrong for me then you promised me you would tell me what was going wrong for you!” Despite her slightly smaller stature, Ahkmenrah felt the intimidation and embarrassment seeping into him. “Now, you’re going to tell us what’s wrong and apologise to us or I _will_ slap you!”

With a sigh, he let himself be dragged by the wrist and shoved into the blue wheelie chair. The group looked at him with kindness that seemed to soften his mind and before he knew it, Ahkmenrah was spilling open his worries to the world.

“When I said that I just had a nightmare, I was lying,” They all waited, making no interruptions as they waited for him to continue further. “Whenever I sleep, I go to the Egyptian Land of the Dead, the Land of Eternal Paradise for those whose hearts were lighter than the feather of Maat,”

”Aaru,”

“Usually when I’m there it’s peaceful, calming, but when I slept tonight, Kahmunrah was there,” Now he was finally talking about it, Ahkmenrah realised how little sense the whole thing made. “I always thought, once you told me about the Smithsonian, that my brother would never reach Aaru because, after the life he lead, his heart would never be lighter than the feather of Maat,”

He was thankful as he spoke that the others had some basic knowledge of the Egyptian belief system, otherwise they would surely be getting slightly confused by now. “But, it turns out that, because he was a Pharaoh he got into the Land of Eternal Paradise- no matter how bad his actions were when he was alive,”

“So, is that why you were so on edge tonight?” Larry asked from his spot slightly above him on the desk, despite how much he belittled himself, he was the most patient and understanding of the group.

Ahkmenrah gave a shuddering breath and continued, “Not exactly.” The group looked shocked, some waited for him to carry on and others whispered their theories to a companion close by.

“Then what was it, Lad?” Teddy inquired.

“I haven’t been entirely honest to you all about the details of my reign as Pharaoh,” He glared at his hands, they were shaking again and Ahkmenrah couldn’t help but be reminded of what had happened less than ten minutes earlier. “When I took over as ruler, there was a crime problem, mainly petty theft but more dangerous crimes too,”

“It all started when my parents had increased the prices of basic goods: food, drink, basic livestock, all things needed for survival…” Closing his eyes, he willed on all Gods that he could gather the courage to speak his mistake. “So, to fix these problems, I listened intently to my advisors and increased the punishments for crime,”

“What did you increase them to?” He heard Octavius yell, he knew that Octavius, Attila and him all shared a mutual knowledge of ruling harshly- their cultures weren’t known for being forgiving.

“I made trials harder to get, criminals who were caught were brought immediately to me and prison sentences were increased immensely,” A single tear rolled down his cheek as he carried on. “But, I was young and ill-advised, so when it came to more serious cases, murder, attempted murder et cetera, I gave out death sentences without a trial,”

The room went quiet, and cold. Ahkmenrah couldn’t bring himself to raise his eyes to meet his friends- or whatever they’d be after this night. The goosebumps rose up on his skin and the traffic on the street outside suddenly became louder.

“H-how many?” Christina choked out, her relationship with death was complicated and it hurt Ahkmenrah even more to think of the pain and confusion she must be feeling.

“Over one-hundred, at least…” The strained sound of his voice almost hurt his ears to hear. His head rose slightly, gazing at the feet of the people in front of him as he heard Larry ask another question.

“How-how did you d-do it?”

“Beheadings usually, people would come from all over to watch them, most of the time an executioner but, if the person’s crime was bad enough, I would do it myself,” Ahkmenrah could feel his voice shake as more silent tears dripped off his chin and jaw. “We’d burn the bodies, my philosophy was that if they could commit such crimes then they would never get into to afterlife and they couldn’t have a soul anyway,”

“What does this have to do with the Land of the Paradise?” Larry questioned again, Ahkmenrah wasn’t sure whether he was angry, scared or concerned. “Did you see a memory or something?”

With a sigh, he spoke about what had happened that night, “Kahmunrah had managed to summon all of the spirits of these people, my victims, and make me realise how guilty I truly am,”

Ahkmenrah huffed as he accepted the most possible outcome, being locked back into his sarcophagus, and stood up solemnly to beat his fellow exhibits to the chase. They remained silent as he became aware of the aggressive slapping of his sandals on the smooth floor. ‘ _I’m going to miss this place,_ ’ He thought as he reached the tower of stairs before him. ‘ _But if tonight has shown anything, I can’t be trusted, one thing happened and I snapped- they’re better off without me,_ ’

Once he’d gotten up the stairs, he was shaken out of his melancholy trance by the warm hand of Larry- the Guardian of Brooklyn. Ahkmenrah still didn’t look at him, he truly was a coward after all, all he could manage was glaring at the wall ahead of him and willing the stinging tears away. He knew that he was being dramatic but he knew that people were complex and that they’d all been apprehensive to let him out in the first place.

“Where are you going Ahk?” Larry’s voice was smooth, why did he have to make things so hard? “You don’t have to leave, okay?”

“Bu-but I hu-hurt people, innocent people, my own people!” The pharaoh stuttered as he made a feeble attempt to remain dignified.

“We’ve all done terrible things Ahkmenrah, we still love you, no matter what you’ve done in the past,” With Larry’s last statement, Ahkmenrah crumpled to the ground in tears, the mask had been dropped and he was left to heave on the staircase landing.

As if on impact, Larry encased him in a heartwarming hug and the loud patters of his friends’ feet could just break through the cloud of sobbing that filled the air. Thousands of years worth of guilt flooded out of his system as he concentrated on the warmth of the arms surrounding him and for a moment, Ahkmenrah let himself stop thinking. He blocked his mind out, closed his eyes and let the pent up pain escape him.

“Why didn't you tell us this if it was hurting you so much?” Larry whispered as to not break the still atmosphere that had been created in the few minutes of unofficial therapy. “Did you think we'd lock you back up in your sarcophagus because of something you did thousands of years ago when you were a different person?”

Ahkmenrah nodded from his position awkwardly crouching on the top stair, peeking his head out of the group hug to look at the comforting night guard. Larry shook his head jokingly as if to say ‘ _Why would you think that?_ ’ and offered out a hand to the young pharaoh- which he willingly took will sniffing horrendously. With shaking legs, the pharaoh shuffled away from his friends while smiling weakly in thanks as they rubbed his arms and returned with smiles just as warm as their hugs.

“You will always be able to trust us Ahkmenrah, we're your family and families stick by one another unconditionally,” Teddy always seemed to know exactly what to say and shared another strong hug before turning to go back down the stairs as a sample of sunlight shone through the large windows.

Sacajawea looked at him with an overwhelming sense of motherly comfort that the pharaoh always seemed to crave, she gently caressed his arm before turning to go to her exhibit. Attila nodded strongly with an air of respect, the two had always got along, probably due to their traumatic past and Ahkmenrah being the only person who could speak Hun out of the group.

Jed and Octavius waved as they were transferred from Attila’s hat to Teddy’s hand as he returned them to their exhibits. Christina hugged him cautiously, Ahkmenrah knew her fear wasn’t of him but of her own past and leant into the brief hug before she stuttered, “I’m glad you told us, Ahkmenrah,” and made her way down the stairs also to disappear into the break room.

Finally Larry captured the young pharaoh’s attention by his loose grasp on his hands, their eyes remained away from each other as they both waited for someone to speak. Moments like this happened to be becoming more and more frequent, to the point where Ahkmenrah was getting annoyed like earlier.

“I feel guilty about things too, Ahk, you don’t have to be alone in what you’re feeling,” The night guard broke the silence, they’d all seen Larry’s evolution and discovered the pain he felt that apparently everyone shared. “I learnt that the hard way,”

“I know now, Larry, I’ve just been pushing it away and forgetting about it because I feared the consequences, I didn’t want any of you to think of me differently because of something I did thousands of years ago before I knew any better!” Their eyes met and a thousand words were spoken in a single look. A thought crossed Ahkmenrah’s mind, an impulse, to kiss the equally hurt night guard in front of him. ‘ _If he could accept him for putting hundreds of people to death, how hard would it be for him to accept Ahkmenrah’s unconventional love?_ ’

However, Ahkmenrah’s thoughts were cut off by Larry speaking again, “I’m glad you know that now, Ahk, if you need anything I’m right here,” He smiled at the pharaoh, who turned to return to his exhibit with a sigh before the night guard stopped him in his tracks with a tug. “Hold on, Ahk, I keep on seeing how much you enjoy speaking Egyptian when you do and I just wanna ask, will you teach me Egyptian?”

Ahkmenrah couldn’t break the shocked look off his face, someone was actively trying to embrace his culture after all the years that he’d been left without anyone to talk in his dead language- Larry actually wanted to learn his language. Grinning, he replied, a bit louder than he’d wished, “Yes! I’ll do it, I’ll teach you Egyptian, I guess we’ll start tomorrow?”

Larry’s face lit up to match the pharaoh’s, as he nodded in agreement before watching Ahkmenrah return to his sarcophagus with a new found sense of glee. ‘ _He wants to learn, he wants to learn!_ ’ The thought ran around his head a million times as he skipped happily off to his gold exhibit, maybe tonight hadn’t been a total loss after all?

**Author's Note:**

> I took some liberties with the Egyptian laws on Capital Punishment but it was for the story. I’ve been working on this for a while now so I’d really appreciate feedback!
> 
> Edit: I got the wrong land of the Dead, Duat was if your heart was heavier than the feather of Maat. Aaru was wear you went if your heart was equal to or lighter than the feather of Maat.
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated, your comments and kudos give me life!


End file.
